The latest fad in children’s entertainment down in our weirdest State (an honor that Florida shares with California) involves alligators’ being brought to backyard pools: “Florida Alligator Pool Parties the Latest for Kids’ Birthdays.” Part of me thinks, “Hicks,” while another part exclaims, “Awesome!” Honestly, I would have loved to have attended an alligator pool party as a child. Actually, I think that I would still enjoy one. It’s also quite a deal—$175 and an occasional missing digit.

Mr. Brown Thumb posted a delightful story earlier in the year about “tomato bombing” a nursing home resident in Louisiana who requested free seeds for his garden.

Dear Internet,

I need your help. I get a lot of weird comments and requests through my contact form on this blog. Most of them are demands for plants and seeds which I promptly ignore. After a few years of having an “open door” to the Internet you quickly become jaded at the hardship notes that accompany the requests for free stuff.

Today, I received the following message:

hi my name is kevin .i live in a nuresy home. i am asking plesae for a little help. like a dontation of biggest tomato seeds. plesae. this would make some old people happy. plesae. address 417 industrial dr oberlin la 70655 ph 337 639 2934

I don’t know what it was about the message that made me Google the address and phone number to see if it was an actual nursing home. I don’t know what made me call the number, but I did.

“[Indecipherable] this is Karen.”

“Hi, my name is MrBrownThumb. I’m from the Internet.” [I always wanted to say that!]

“Did Kevin Email you something crazy?”

“Uh-I was just calling to confirm that a Kevin was a resident there.”

“Yeah, he lives here. We get calls from all over the place. He Emails everyone on the Internet.”

“He asked me for tomato seeds for a garden.”

[Laughing] “I swear we’re going to end up with a tropical rainforest back there because of him.”

“So there is a garden?”

“Yeah, there’s a garden out back. Don’t nobody care about that garden but Kevin. But he does have a garden here. Some of the nurse staff helps once in a while.”

“So, he’s legit?”

[Laughing] “He works our nerves, but he’s legit. The other day he came with his mom and a wheelbarrow of stuff for his garden.”

During the rest of the phone call I learned Kevin in a 45-year-old resident of St. Francis Nursing Home who uses his own money to plant a garden there, and spends his free time soliciting for free plant material. His requests for plant material and the reactions the staff get through phone calls is something they find great humor in.

So, I’m asking for your help to tomato bomb Kevin in Louisiana. I’m going to send him seeds, and I’ve put a request on Twitter and Facebook for someone in Louisiana to help me get him some actual tomato plants. Perhaps someone can even pay Kevin and his garden a visit and see if there’s anything else that could be sent to him that would be of use.

Now I’m turning to my garden blog in the hopes that maybe this request gets more attention and he gets the “biggest” tomatoes possible. I’ve never asked the Internet for anything, and I really need this right now. The magic of Caine’s Arcade is leaving me and I desperately need to see something good happen in this world. . . .

Mr. Brown Thumb happily reports that the Internet has answered the call.